Novelty apparatus



1,526,419 s. A. GRUBBS NOVELTY APPARATUS Eiled Ju1y 13. 1921 5Sheets-Sheet 1 COLE BUICK FORD ill lull! I DODGE Alli" PACKARD INVENTOR.

Ste/622%. firazbs ATTORNEY.

s. "A. GRUBBS NOVELTY APPARATUS Fileg July 13, 1921 5 Sheets-Sheet 2INVENTOR.

Ste/era 56.7. 67 21558 Fgb, 17, 1925.

's. A. GRUBBS NOVELTY APPARATUS Filed Jfily 13, 1921 5 Sheets-Sheet 5'INWENTOR.

Jim e22 J9. 627$};

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S. A. GRUBBS NOVELTY APPARATUS Filed July 13, 1921 5 Sheets-Sheet 4wwwtoa: Sterem .2? Gras.

Feb. 17. 1925; 1,526,419

S. A GRUBBS NOVELTY APPARATUS Filegi July 13, 1921 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 INVEN7 0R.

Ste/622 ,W. Era $63 v Patented Feb. 17, 1925.

UNITED STATES STEVEN A. GRUBBS, F COLUMBUS, OHIO.

NOVELTY APPARATUS.

Application filed July 13, 1921. Serial No. 484,520.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that STEVEN A. GRUBBS, a citizen of the United States,residing at Columbus, in the county of Franklin and State of Ohio, hasinvented certain new and useful Improvements in Novelty Apparatus, ofwhich the following is a specification.

This invention'relates to an improved novelty apparatus designed for usein recrea-tional centers for the purpose of providing amusement and theopportunity to exercise individual skill and supremacy in the actuationof the apparatus.

In carrying out the invention use is made of a novelty apparatus whichconsists of a suitably formed casing constructed to provide a circularraceway or track, around which suitable counters are adapted to revolve,the said counters being carried by means of axially rotatable supportsprovided Within the casing which are driven from a suitable form ofmotor, and to provide in conjunction with the casing and manuallyoperated brake structure which upon actuation will engage with saidsupports to govern rotation on the part of the latter and the consequentcontrol of the counters carried thereby with respect to the raceway, thearrangement of parts being such that when the brake structure isinitially operated, the said motor will be energized to effect therotation of the counter supports, permitting said counters to revolverapidly about the raceway, and whereby upon subsequent manipulation ofthe brake structure, the rotation of said supports may be arrested sothat by the exercise of skill the said counters may be brought to a stopat desired positions upon the raceway, an arrangement which permits theoperator who brings a counter nearest the predetermined goal tosuccessfully conclude the contest.

A further object of the invention resides in forming the raceway toinclude a plurality of concentrically located annular tracks, each ofsaid tracks being provided with an individual set of counters, toprovide a plurality of rotatable supports within the an casingforeffecting the retention and rotation'of the counters from a commonmotor,

and to provide interior and exterior braking arms for the purpose ofcontrolling the rotation of the axial support-s.

Other objects of the invention reside in an apparatus of this characterwhich will be capable of furnishing considerable amusement and enjoymentto the operators thereof, to be simple yet efiicient in construction soas to overcome the necessity of continuous repairs or other mechanicaldisorders, and to include a construction whereby the counter supportsmay continue to rotate by their own momentum after the driving motor hashad its operation arrested. The invention is further adapted to beemployed as an advertising novelty and to include an improved countingor scoring arrangement in conjunction with the rotatable counters.

WVith these and other objects in view, as will appear as the descriptionproceeds, the invention accordingly consists in the novel features ofconstruction. combinations of elements and arrangements of parts,hereinafter to be fully described and pointed out in the appendedclaims.

In the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this specification, andin which similar characters of reference denote like and correspondingparts;

Figure 1 is a front elevation of the in'1- proved apparatus comprisingthe present invention,

Figure 2 is a detail perspective view disclosing fragmentarily theraceway construction and the cooperative scoring apparatus,

Figure 3 is a vertical longitudinal sectional view taken through theapparatus on the plane indicated by the line 3-3 of Figure 1,

Figure 4 is a top plan view of the apparatus,

Figure 5 is a side elevation of one of the counters,

Figure 6 is a front view thereof,

Figure 7 is a horizontal sectional view taken through the apparatus,

Figure 8 is a detail sectional view disclosing the position of thebraking structure when initially operated to energize the oper' atingmotor,

closing the. mounting for ity of said arms ing therebetween a connectmgweb 12, By

Figure 9 is a detail sectional view of the bracket utilized insupporting the longitudinal rods of the braking structure,

Figure 10 is a detail vertical section disclosing. the position of thebraking structure when actuated to force the inner'pivoted arm thereofinto engagement with one of the rotatable counter supports.-

Figure 11 is a fragmentary front elevation disclosing the supports forthe pivoted U shaped member utilized in the braking structure anddesigned for effecting the operation of the pivoted armsof said struc-Figure 12 v w view disclosinggthe positions of the brak ng structurewhen thev outwardly extending cludes an inner section 4, an intermediatesection 5: and anouter section 6, the said 7 sections beingrelativelyfspaeedLtoprovide annular grooves 7 and 8 which serve toconstitute arace r trackway;

the central portion thereof with a bearing 9, from which-projectrearwardly; extendin'g diverging arms to terminate in teet -11,-whiclrare. adapted to be securedstationaril-y, and securely to the outerportionsof'the casing 2, therigid being enhanced by provid thisconstruction it: will'be apparent that the inner sectionoftheplateorcoverot the apparatus may be rigidly mountedinan operative position. Theouter sectiontlrere- 01' Y has its circumferential portion suitablysecured to the caslng 2, and the lntermediate portion is adaptedtdbemaintained nr a supported and operatlve position by providing' theapparatus witlra plurality of arches a 13, i

which are adapted to extend overthe grooves 7 and-.8- and have theirlower ends secured to the inner and outer sections iand 6 respectively.These arches carry depend ing-rodsl l, which'have their lower endsequipped with suitable fastening. devices '15 for the purposeof-securing the section 'be tweenthe inner and outer sections. t

The presence of the grooves 7 "and Sin the cover of is a detail verticalsectional said bearing fo'nn of hsks, the hubs ln this instance thesaid, casing.

To effect the" supportof the various sections otthe top; plate,the innersection is provided be'neatl-r 10, the-latter being u-pwa'rdlyandoutwardly curved and formed the apparatus provides race-- ways ofannular formation with which rotatable counters 16 are adapted tocooperate; In the present instance the counters 16 are of a form toresemble motor driven vehicles,

but-this form is op'tiona'l, and it will be ap invention includes meansfor effecting the rotatables'u'pp'ort"of the counters and to enable themovements of the latter to be under the control of the'operato'rs of theapparatus, inorder that'the positions of the counters with respect tothe raceway may be governed to permit 01": features" of scoring to behereinafter described. To this end, the base17" of'thecasing'is providedcentrally with'abearin'gf 18, which is situated in verticalaligiji'm'ent 'with the bearing 9, the being relatively disposed toreceiye the upper and lower ends of a vertic-ally situated shaft 19.This shaft is adapted to loosely carry a" pair of spaced horizontallydisposed rotatable counter support's20, which in this instance-are inthe l or which being adapted 'to loosely surround the shaft 19inorder"thatfthesaid supports may rotate independently-ofthe'shaft. Theouter circu'n'iferential edges of the supports 20 and 21' are locatedil'mnediately beneath the grooves7'and 8 the support 20- being situatedso as to' register with the groove 7,

when the support 21 will register with the outer groove-8'. As shown,the'counters 16 are" provided with depending threaded rods 22 adaptedto'h'a've their 'lowerends engaged in the respectivesupports'and areheld in engagement therewith, which carry securing nuts 2 3 asclearlyshown in'Figure 3 of the drawing. By; means of thisconstruction the saidcounters may be'ri'gidly' secured to the supports 20fand' 21 soas torotate in u ison therewith, the grooves 7 and 8 allowing for thepresence "of the rods 22.

Toefi'ect rotation of the supporting disks 20f'and 21, use is made inthis instance oi an electric motor'24c, whose armature shaft'carrise abelt pulley 25, around which an endless shaft of the motor may beproperly stepped down tUconiOrm with the required speed necessary to beimparted to the shaft 19.

v This belt leads to anenopening-in the Web l2 and is normally'disposedspacedrelatiozr from the upper surface'of"theasupporting disk 20, a leafspring 56 r"the"like being situated to cooperate with the inner end ofthe lever 52 for the phrposemtmaintaining the end 51 of said leverinengagementwivith the bar 50 and the shoe end 55 01": said lever outotengagement with respect to the disk 20. Manit'est'ly; hoivererpuponthe oscillation of the handles connected with the rods 4-2, the

said lever 52 will be oscillated against the tension-of the spring: 56,so that the shoe end thereot will be'b-rought into frictional. enfiiga'gementwith the uppersurface ot the disk QOythus tending to bring thelatter to a stop together with the counters carried thereby.Bythis'construction the counters carried by v the upper supporting diskmay be brought 26 to a stop in a controlled manner byan operator atvariousfsecuring positions upon the racewa The outer counters or thosecarried *bythedisk 21 have their positions govern'e'd by: means of thehandles connected \vith'the rods 43. These rods are situated, asaforesaid, to oscillate the bar 47. This bar engages with the lowerendot a shoe 5? pi rotaillycarriedby the rod 48, the upper V end of thesaid shoe being normally disposed in 'spaced relation from the undersurface of thedisk 21. Il'0wever,"b reciprocatingthe rods43, the saidshoe 5? may be raised so as to 'friction'all'y engage with the 'disk:21,

thus bringing the latter to a stop in a manner similar to that set forthfor operating;

the support 20.

From the foregoing description, taken in conjunction with theaccompanying drawing's it Will be apparent that the presentinve'ntionprovidesa sin'lpleapparatus capable of affording pleasure andentertain ment for the operators thereof and one wherein the element ofpersonal skill will becomeapparentbythe manipulation of the operatingdevice of the apparatus. The game requires watclrhilness on the part oftli'eope'rators in denoting the positions which their respectivecountersassume when. traveling albbut theraceway, and then dexterity andskill must be exercised in oscillating tho brakii'ig handles 34: sothatthe counters may be brought'to' a stop at the best scoring positionspossible. As shown' inFigure 2 the I arches 1311nay be connected bymeans at arct'iate strips 58, which are alsocapable of bearing suitablescoring indicia and coop era'te with the arches 13 to permit of a moreexact scoring arrangement The wall 39 n'i'ayjbc' provided with anelectric lampj :39,

69 which is capable of being energized to prop erly illuminate theapparatus. The shaft 19 maybe provided with suitable bores to perni""ofproper lubrication for the revolving disks" 20' and'2l It will beapparent that thmtiihber-bf supports and sets of counters maybe variedin order that the apparatus may aeconnnodateaiiy desired number ofplayers. Itwill be apparent that the con struction, by reason of itssin'iplicity, will be capable of imparting extendedscrvice withoutrequiring undue repairs or adjustments and that the mechanism as a wholewill be rendered accessible and convenient to reach should actionsoire'ijuire. In view ofthe foregoing-it is believed that the operation,construction and advantages ot'thc invention will be apparent to thoseskilled in the art, and therefore a more extended cX- pilanation hasbeen accordingly omitted.

lVhat is claimed 'is: p

1. In an'apparatus ofthe character described, a casing including araceway, a rotatable support mounted within said casing, counters fixedto said support and capable of'rotating'abmit said raceway, means forimpartingmotion to said support, and means for governingthe rotation ofsaid support including: ajpivotally mounted lcvcr havingthe free endthereof normallj spaced from said supportya bar piyotall j mounted inthe casing and engagedfwith said lever and an oscillatory handle capableupon manual operation of oscillating said bar and thus the lever toforce the latter into trictional braking engagen'ient with said support.

2. In a novelty apparatus, a casing; including a pluialitjflof raceways,a plru'ali'tv of supports mounted for rotation within said casing,counters carriedby said supports and capable ot' rotating: about saidracen'ays, means for imparting motion to said supports, a scoringstructure cooperative with said raceway and counters, inner andoutenbraking devices and means operating to force the braking devicesinto frictional contact with said supports to arrest rotation on thepart of the latter to control the movements of said counters.

3. In a novelty apparatus, a casing including a raceway, a disk mountedfor rotation within-said casing, upwardly projecting' counters rigidl xcarried by said disk and capable of traversing said raceway, means forimparting rotation to said disk, and means for governing the rotation ofsaid disk, including a pivotally mounted lever, the outer end o'f saidlever being formed in the shape of an arch capable of permitting saidcounters to pass thereunder. the extreme outer end of saidlcver beingterminated in spaced relation from said disk, and manually operatedmeans for oscillating said lever to 'force the latter into frictionalengagen'ient withsaid disk.

4. In a novelty apparatus, a casing, a support mounted for rotationwithin said casing, spaced counterscarried by said support and capableof rotating abouta trackway, provided in conjunction with said cas- Theshaft 19 in this instance also carries a fixed ratchet wheel 31,Which isdisposed to be engaged withpivoted spring pressed pawls 32 carried bythe supporting disks 20 and 21. The arrangement of the pawls is suchthat when the shaft 19 is rotated uniform motion will be imparted to thesupporting disks. However, upon the cessation of the application ofpower to the shaft 19, the disks 20 and 21 will be permitted to rotateunder their own momentum until the same are brought to a stop bymanually controlled devices to be hereinafter set forth. For controllingthe rotation of the disks 20 and 21, I employ an improved starting andbraking structure, designated broadly by the numeral 33. This structureincludes a plurality of manually operated oscillatory handles 34, whichare mounted upon horizontal pivots 35 carried by the casing, the lowerends of said handles projecting into the interior of the casing andhaving connected therewith small springs 36 which opcrate to maintainthe handles in a normal position. Situated immediately to the front ofthe handles 34, which latter are located in vertical alignment in thefront part of the casing, is a pivotally mounted circuit closer 37, thelatter being situated between the lower ends of the handles 34, and apair of stationary contacts 38. The contacts 38 are suitably connectedwith and form a part of the electric circuit in which the motor 24 issituatec It is obvious that when anyone of the handles 34 is grasped andoscillated in a specified direction, the closer 37 will be oscillatedso'as to physically engage with the contacts 38, thus completing themotor circuit. The circuit is closed for a suitable period, sufficientto effect more or less rapid rotation on the part of the supportingdisks 20 and 21. When this occurs. the handles 34 are released andrespond to the tension of their springs 36 so as to permit the closer 37to return to a normal position breaking the motor circuit. The motor isthus deenergized and consequently rotation on the part of the shaft 19is arrested, however, the disks 20 and 21 may continue to rotate byreason of the pawl and ratchet construction 31 and 32 The scoring ofcounting, or other indications which are used to denote the winner ofthe game, is effected by providing the cover plate 3 with the arches 13,which arches may bear suitable numbers or other equivalent indicia.Also, the upper part of the casing is provided with an upright wall 39having openings 40 provided in the lower part thereof in registrationwith the grooves 6 and 7 and with the arches 13, the said plates servingto conceal the rear of the machine when the latter is viewed from thefront. The counters 16 carry upwardly projecting resilient strips 41which are adapted to pass under the arches. upon the operation of themotor 24, the counters 16 will be revolved by reason of a mechanismdescribed, and then, through the instrumentality of the brakingstructure 33, the movement of the counters is cap-able of beingcontrolled so that the same may be stopped in a regulated manner near orin registration with the scoring arches 13. These arches bear numbers ofvarying numher, and consequently it is the object of the players of thegame to bring their respective counters to a stop nearest the archwayhearing the number of the greatest value. It will be plain that by theprovision of the wall 39, and by reason of the rapid rotation of thecounters, it will be a fairly difficult matter to stop any particularvehicle near the arch of the highest value, since the latter is situatedin such manner that the operator must act quickly and skillfully tobring the counter to a stop so that the pointer strip 41 thereof willregister with the arch, the player who stops his counter nearest thearch of highest value being declared the winner of the contest.

To effect the stopping of the counters in scoring positions, the brakestructure 33 includes a plurality of sets of longitudinally extendingrods 42 and 43, the former of which being adapted to control the'counters traveling in the groove 7, and the latter to control the counterstraveling in the groove 8. The outer ends of the rods 42 and 43 arepivotally connected as at 44 with the lower depending ends of thehandles 34, while the other ends of said rods pass through openings 45provided in a longitudinally extending rigid bracket 46, mounted uponthe base of the casing. The inner ends of the rods 42 engage with apivoted U-shaped bar 47, which is mounted for swinging movement upon ahorizoi'itally extending rod 48 carried in rigid bearings 49, theconstruction being such that upon the oscillation of the handles 34 withwhich the rods 42 are connected, motion will be imparted to the bar 47.Similarly, the rods 43 engage at their inner ends with a U-shaped bar 50also pivotally carried by the rod 48, the said bar 50 being adapted foroscillation upon movement on the part of the handles 34- with which therods 43 are connected. The bar 47 is disposed for engagement with thelower curved end 51 of a pivoted braking lever 52, which latter ispivotally carried as at 53 upon a bearing projecting from one of theinner walls of the casing. The lever 52 then extends upwardly andoutwardly through a slot provided in the cover plate 3, and is bent, asshown at 54, to constitute an arch through which the revolving countcrsare permitted to pass. The effective end of this arch terminates in adownwardly directed shoe 55, which passes through an It will be evidentthat ing, a scoring structure including a plurality of spaced countingarches, a motor for rotating said support, and a braking lever forgoverning the operation of said support, including an exteriorly locatedportion in the form of an arch capable of permitting said counters topass thereunder,

and manually operated means operable to force said device intofrictional engagement With said support, whereby said counters Ina3 bestopped at positions contiguous to said arches.

In testimony whereof I afiix my signature.

STEVEN A. GRUBBS.

